2.1 History of cities

• Aardrijkskunde
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 3

2.1 History of cities

Learning objectives

After studying this section, you will be able to:

• Explain the development of cities, in the past and in the present
  
• Describe the different functions cities have

The first cities

The very first region where cities could be found: 

• Fertile Crescent in the Middle East
• Tigris, Euphrates and Nile river valleys. 
• Fertile soil caused by seasonal flooding of the floodplains made it possible for farmers to cultivate the land. 
• Farmers produced more than enough food for everyone. 
• Not everyone became a farmer; people specialised in other kinds of jobs. 
• Many people gathered in settlements and trade became possible.

The development of cities

• Middle Ages: cities became important centres of trade, knowledge, religion and development, as well as ports for seafaring. 
• Many people wanted to live in the cities for food, work and protection. 
• City walls for defence and as a symbol of power and wealth.
  
• Cities expanded and grew organically, as well as in a planned manner.  

Organic growth

Planned growth

Organic growth

Planned growth

Growth in industrial times

• The Industrial Revolution (19th century) took place in Europe and the US. 
• Most factories were located in cities, outside of the historic core.
• Railways were built close to factories for transporting goods easily.
• Many employees lived in the city, or came from nearby rural areas. 
• Houses were built by factory owners, to accommodate newcomers.
• Living in industrialised cities had its downsides: dangerous + demanding jobs,  air pollution (burned coal), water pollution and outbreaks of disease and poor housing conditions.

The functions of cities

Cities have many functions: 

• Places where people live and enjoy themselves.
•  Administrative centre: important (political) decisions are made here.
• Financial centre: important centres of economic activity.
• Transport hub: cities near an ocean with ports and harbours.
• Technology centre: home to companies that specialise in developing new technology.

Frankfurt, a financial centre in Europe

Rotterdam, a transport hub in Europe

Does Leerdam fulfil a function mentioned in the text? Discuss this with your neighbour.

Essence

The very first cities were founded in the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. Many of these cities were located along rivers. Some cities developed in an organic manner, while others saw planned development. Nowadays, cities can have many different functions: they can be centres of administrative or financial activity, trade and transport or technology hubs.

Havo: Look at the planner and do the exercises in Eduhint

A network of cities

• Cities are becoming closer to each other, as a result of globalisation
• More and more information, knowledge, goods & services are exchanged.
• Therefore cities worldwide work together in networks on a regional and global scale to share knowledge, tackle problems and threats, and take advantage of new opportunities.
• Example regional scale level: 'BosWash' in the USA.
• Example global scale level: Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (7,000 cities work together to limit the amount of pollution caused by cities and to do research into the impact of cities on the global climate.

Vwo: Look at the planner in Teams and do the exercises in Eduhint